Tatiana Totmianina facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tatiana Totmianina
Totmianina at the 2005 Russian Nationals
Personal information
Full name	Tatiana Ivanovna Totmianina
Country represented	Russia
Born	(1981-11-02) 2 November 1981 (age 43) Perm, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Residence	Saint Petersburg, Russia
Height	1.65 m
Partner	Maxim Marinin
Former coach	Oleg Vasiliev Natalia Pavlova
Former choreographer	Alexander Matveev Lori Nichol Svetlana Korol Giuseppe Arena
Skating club	Yubileyny Sport Club
Retired	2006
ISU personal best scores
Combined total	204.48 2006 Olympics
Short program	70.12 2005 Worlds
Free skate	135.84 2006 Olympics
Medal record Representing  Russia Figure skating: Pairs Olympic Games Gold 2006 Turin Pairs World Championships Gold 2005 Moscow Pairs Gold 2004 Dortmund Pairs Silver 2003 Washington, D.C. Pairs Silver 2002 Nagano Pairs European Championships Gold 2006 Lyon Pairs Gold 2005 Turin Pairs Gold 2004 Budapest Pairs Gold 2003 Malmö Pairs Gold 2002 Lausanne Pairs Silver 2001 Bratislava Pairs Grand Prix Final Gold 2005–2006 Tokyo Pairs Silver 2003–2004 Colorado Springs Pairs Gold 2002–2003 St. Petersburg Pairs

Tatiana Ivanovna Totmianina (born 2 November 1981) is a famous Russian former pair skater. She competed with her partner Maxim Marinin. Together, they won the gold medal at the 2006 Olympic Games. They also became World champions twice and European champions five times! Tatiana and Maxim started skating together in 1996 and stopped competing in 2006.

Tatiana's Skating Journey

Totmianina and Marinin at the 2004 Worlds

Starting Out in Skating

Tatiana Totmianina was born in Perm. She started skating when she was only four years old. Her mother loved to skate for fun and introduced Tatiana to the ice. Tatiana began taking lessons at the sports palace in Perm.

When she was 14, Tatiana was asked to train in Saint Petersburg. In 1995, she met Maxim Marinin at the Russian Nationals. Maxim had started pair skating in 1993 but needed a partner. They teamed up in 1996. Early in their career, their coach was Natalia Pavlova in Saint Petersburg.

Becoming a Top Skating Pair

Tatiana and Maxim got better and better in the late 1990s. In 2001, they started training with Oleg Vasiliev, who was an Olympic champion himself. They moved to Chicago, Illinois, in the United States to train with him.

Their first big win was at the European Championships in 2002. They finished 4th at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. They won silver medals twice at the World Championships before finally winning gold in 2004. The day after winning their first World title, Tatiana hurt her shoulder during practice.

A Difficult Moment: The Accident

On 23 October 2004, something scary happened during a competition called 2004 Skate America. Maxim lost his balance while doing a lift, and Tatiana fell headfirst onto the ice. She got a concussion and had to stay in the hospital overnight.

Tatiana recovered quickly and was back on the ice in just a few days. She didn't blame Maxim, but the accident made him very worried. He found it hard to lift her because he was scared. He worked with a sport psychologist to help him overcome his fear.

Returning Stronger and Winning Gold

Totmianina and Marinin perform a twist lift at Russian Nationals in January 2005

Tatiana and Maxim returned to competing two months later, in January 2005. They won gold at the Russian Nationals and then the European Championships. In March, they won their second World title easily at the World Championships in Moscow.

From then on, Tatiana and Maxim were the best in the world. In December 2005, Tatiana had a health issue, but she recovered. They won their fifth European Championship in January 2006. Everyone expected them to win at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. They won both the short program and the long program, earning the 2006 Olympic gold medal!

After the Olympics, Tatiana and Maxim decided to retire from competitive skating. They joined the Champions on Ice show and toured with other famous skaters. Tatiana has also appeared on the Russian TV show Ice Age as a skater and judge. She still skates with Maxim in ice shows.

Tatiana's Life Off the Ice

Tatiana Totmianina was born on 2 November 1981 in Perm. Her family life was sometimes difficult. Sadly, in January 2009, Tatiana faced a very difficult time when her mother passed away after a car accident. Her fiancé, Alexei Yagudin, who is also a famous figure skater, helped her through this sad period.

On 20 November 2009, Tatiana and Alexei welcomed their first child, a daughter named Elizaveta, also called Liza. On 2 October 2015, their second daughter, Michèle, was born. The family also has a Yorkshire Terrier dog named Varia.

Images for kids

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  Tatiana Totmianina and Maxim Marinin with their coach Oleg Vasiliev